App vs. Website differences

[mrresource]

I noticed that the website shows more caches than the android app.  I have the basic version.

Just wondering why.

Edited March 18, 2019 by mrresource

[+barefootjeff]

On the website, basic members can view all caches except those set as Premium Member Only. The official app has many other restrictions, though, including limiting it to traditional and event caches with both difficulty and terrain 2.0 or less. The differences are documented on this page of the Help Centre.

[+cerberus1]

2 hours ago, mrresource said:

I noticed that the website shows more caches than the android app.  I have the basic version.

Just wondering why.

 

Well, the site has said that they'd keep the site free to everyone.  For most parts they have.  

"Free" means maybe a little more work, by loading caches to a GPSr, adding waypoints to the app by using the website, or realizing the limitations of the basic app. 

The app wasn't around when the "free" statement was made.  It needs constant care, needing a few more folks, and (it seems) may need a bit more to keep  it running.

[+The A-Team]

34 minutes ago, cerberus1 said:

The app wasn't around when the "free" statement was made.  It needs constant care, needing a few more folks, and (it seems) may need a bit more to keep  it running.

Yeah, mobile apps need extra effort to create and maintain. First off, you need specialized developers who know how to work with the mobile platforms, for which the development work is very different from building a website. Then, you have a faster-changing environment, where an unmaintained app may not even run on a device after a few years, compared with a page on a website that may work for many years without being touched. All of this comes at a cost, which someone needs to pay for. Frankly, I'm amazed that they still haven't raised the subscription cost by now, considering that wages must have gone up, the number of staff has likely increased, the cost of real estate in Seattle has most definitely gone up, etc.

[+colleda]

A phone with an app is not a computer   -   yet.

[+kunarion]

5 hours ago, cerberus1 said:

 

Well, the site has said that they'd keep the site free to everyone.  For most parts they have.  

"Free" means maybe a little more work, by loading caches to a GPSr, adding waypoints to the app by using the website, or realizing the limitations of the basic app. 

The app wasn't around when the "free" statement was made.  It needs constant care, needing a few more folks, and (it seems) may need a bit more to keep  it running.

 

I already have the entire web site on my phone.  I don't need an App that also has the entre web site on my phone.  Just offline caches, and navigation. If I could use any compass App I choose, I wouldn't even need the "Navigation" feature of the App.